Death toll in Ukraine rises to at least 26 after wave of Russian missile strikes

Firefighters pass by debris of a building following Russia's missile attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Friday. Efrem Lukatsky/AP

The Presidential Administration in Ukraine reported Friday that at least 26 people had been killed and 120 injured following the latest wave of Russian missile attacks.

“In total, 26 people were killed and more than 120 wounded,” said Olexiy Kuleba, Deputy Head of the Office of the President on X.

The number includes updated casualty figures in Odesa, Zaporizhzhia and Kyiv, according to local officials.  

Nearly 50 homes, as well as apartment buildings, a school and a shopping mall had been damaged or destroyed. A maternity hospital in the city of Dnipro was also extensively damaged.

Kyiv residents told CNN of their experiences when the wave of attacks began: 

• Viktoria Krasyuk: “It was very loud, the house was shaking, it was very scary. It seems like you've been living in this for many months, but it still causes emotions, it's still very difficult, it's very hard to decide whether to stay or go somewhere, or even leave (the country).”
• Tetyana Yevdokymenko: “As a mother, I'm scared for myself and my children. ... This time we heard a dull sound, we knew it was far away, but when we saw the smoke, we started calling our friends, our brother, who works nearby," adding, “It seems to me that such aggression is simply impossible to justify."
• Serhiy (declined to provide last name): “Nothing changes, the (Russians’) goal is the same — to destroy Ukraine as a state and to destroy all rebellious Ukrainians as a nation. ... Unfortunately, Russia is learning to fight. It is learning to fight, including from us Ukrainians. They are accumulating ammunition, everything else they need.”